Caley Thistle have once again bucked the trend in Scottish football by posting a profit for the third year in a row.
The club yesterday announced a record profit of £254,240 for last season yesterday following the sale of attacker Billy Mckay to Wigan Athletic, the Scottish Cup win and qualification for the Europa League after a third-place finish in the Scottish Premiership.
So much for the Scottish football Armageddon theory put forward when Rangers were liquidated and forced to start all over again in the bottom tier of the professional game.
Caley Jags chairman Kenny Cameron hailed the role played by manager John Hughes and his players in helping make last season the most successful in the club’s 21-year history.
He said: “Our strategy and business model has again served us well over a memorable period
“We’ve been aware for some time that we have a very special group of players.
“We’ve done our best to retain the services of the majority of them to ensure squad stability.”
While there will be great satisfaction within the boardroom at an excellent season, former Caley Jags midfielder Barry Wilson hopes manager Hughes will benefit by being allowed to bring in fresh faces to his injury-stricken squad when the transfer window reopens in January.
He said: “Kenny Cameron can expect to have his manager knocking on the door asking for some of the profit to be put into the player pool soon and justifiably so in my view.
“He has had to endure a horrific injury list so far this season and many of them are out for the long-term.
“I could reel off a list of seven or eight players from Richie Foran and Gary Warren who we’ve barely seen so far this season to Aaron Doran and Dean Brill who haven’t kicked a ball.
“It’s not a case of wanting to strengthen a squad, John needs to.”
Hughes, who is out of contract in the summer, has hinted he wants assurances about his budget before committing his future to the club.
In an interview last month he said: “I knew when I came up here I was working with the budget I was working with. It’s never changed.
“It’s just before you sign that contract just getting to know exactly what tools you’re working with next year.
“I don’t want to sign a contract and something gets taken away.”
Wilson anticipates an amicable resolution to the contract talks but can understand the Inverness manager’s concern after watching a number of key players depart the club in 2015.
He said: “Knowing Caley Thistle as I do they’ve always been fairly relaxed in these situations in the past and I’ve no doubt the two parties will have spoken about a new deal already.
“I expect it will be a case of fine details in January, but John has been a crucial part of the success the club had last season and it is important they resolve his future.”